County of Trinkitat

The County of Trinkitat was a Nubian state that existed during the High Middle Ages. It was located on the coast of the Red Sea in present-day Sudan, and it was one of the minor Nubian kingdoms in East Africa during the 11th century.

History
Trinkitat is currently a port city on the Red Sea in Sudan, and during the Middle Ages it was ruled by the House of Hedareb, a Miaphysite Christian dynasty of Nubians. Trinkitat bordered the Nubian kingdoms of Suakin to the north, Hayya to the west, and Abyssinia's (later Axum's) Massawa enclave to the south.

Trinkitat's population was mostly made up of Christian Nubians, although there were Islamic influences from the Rassid Emirate across the Red Sea, from the Fatimid Caliphate to the north, and the former County of Assab just to the south. It was a maritime nation, relying on fish to provide resources. Unlike some of its neighbors, it was a feudal society ruled by counts, not chiefs like other Nubian kingdoms at the time. However, it was bordered by two kingdoms, the Zagwe dynasty of Abyssinia (present-day Ethiopia) and Axum (also in Ethiopia). Trinkitat remained neutral during the campaigns of King Dawit II of Axum, who set his sights on becoming King of Abyssinia by conquering the Zagwe dynasty and returning Axum to its former glory in the 6th century.